The invention relates to a device for the treatment of a biological fluid, particularly a device comprising a chamber which is suitable for receiving a biological fluid, and another chamber which is suitable for receiving a gas, wherein the chambers are separated from each other by a gas-permeable membrane, and wherein the membrane allows a transfer of gas molecules between the chambers.
It is a gassing or degassing device, in which one or more gases can pass from one medium into another, or a gas exchange device, which allows the exchange of one or more gases between two media. Such devices are used in the fields of chemistry, biotechnology and medicine. An important application in medicine is the enrichment of blood with oxygen and/or the removal of carbon dioxide from blood. Such measures are e.g. essential for surgery of various characters and in the treatment of various pulmonary diseases.
Currently, the only long term effective treatment option for patients with end stage functional lung disease is lung transplantation. Other medical solution to permanently replace the function of the lungs does not however exist. In patients suffering from chronic lung diseases and which are not eligible for a lung transplant, there is a need for an artificial lung-assist. An example of this is premature infants who typically need support for their lung function over several weeks or even months. There is also a need for lung-assist devices for patients awaiting lung transplantation.
Patients who must be treated with artificial lung-assist procedure often also suffer from additional renal insufficiency. Diseases that can lead to lung failure, may require large volumes of fluid resuscitation, and patients often receive significant amounts of blood products. The resulting physical overload with fluids may possibly lead to a general deterioration of the patient's condition, to pulmonary oedema or even complete organ failure. Such patients are therefore connected to an additional hemodialysis or hemofiltration device. This leads however to a complicated constellation of treatment devices and greater stress on the vascular system of the patient.